Immortal Hulk
Immortal Hulk is the result of Bruce Banner and the Hulk having been through different deaths and rebirths. Unlike the other Hulk incarnations, Immortal Hulk is content with waiting inside Banner. If Banner is injured by sunset, the Immortal Hulk will emerge with his transformation being limited to night-time. The Immortal Hulk is absolutely the most powerful version of Hulk we’ve seen to date. He has a massive gamma burst ability capable of leveling a mountain. He can drain the gamma from other gamma mutates. He can sense liars. The Immortal Hulk is the most powerful incarnation to date. Immortal Hulk is a Marvel Comics series that was launched with issue #1 on June 6, 2018. The series features characters and creators with some degree of recognizability. Immortal Hulk series writer Al Ewing pens this one-shot, giving some much-needed nuance to Bruce and the Hulk's side of this story – and also revealing more about the Banner/Hulk dynamic at the core of Immortal Hulk. The Immortal Hulk #1-10 is written by Al Ewing, penciled by Joe Bennett, and releases with multiple publisher covers by such incredible artists as Alex Ross, Kaare Andrews, Clayton Crain, Sal Buscema, & Joe Bennet. Exclusive variant covers are brought to us by a myriad of some of the best artists in the game, including Dale Keown, In Hyuk Lee, Gabrielle Dell’Otto, Lee Garbett, Arthur Adams, and Marko Djurdjevic. The Immortal Hulk #11-20 is written by Al Ewing, penciled by Joe Bennett, with a main cover by the amazing Alex Ross. Exclusive variant covers feature such talented artists as Will Sliney, Geoff Shaw, Chris Stevens, Matthew DiMasi, & Gabriele Dell'Otto. The Return of Bruce Banner As Bruce Banner struggles to control the undying monster within, he finds himself hunted by his old friends and allies. He is in Hell in The Immortal Hulk #3. The Immortal Hulk #4 is the final showdown. Bruce Banner versus General Fortean, a man willing to do whatever it takes to destroy The Immortal Hulk #5 ''once and for all, even if it means turning himself into what he hates the most. Bruce Banner is alive, and everyone knows it. Now he’s hunted by the government, Alpha Flight, the mysterious Shadow Base ... and the Avengers. And someone’s going to find him first. But Bruce has bigger problems. Something terrible has infected him. Something with unspeakable plans for humanity. And the only one who knows about it is ''The Immortal Hulk #6. They’re the reason he died. They’re the reason he came back. Now the Avengers have to bring him in. But how far will even Earth’s Mightiest Heroes go to cage in The Immortal Hulk #7. Following his fatal battle with the Avengers that left him a charred corpse, Bruce Banner is captured by U.S. Hulk Operations and sent to Shadow Base, in The Immortal Hulk #8. The Absorbing Man has to kill The Immortal Hulk #9. Crusher Creel is damned. And the One Below All walks upon Earth. Now, in the place he was born, The Immortal Hulk #10 is the last thing standing between the world of the living and the Green Door. The Immortal Hulk #11. Hulk in Hell. Jackie McGee is in hell. Carl Creel is in hell. The Immortal Hulk #12. ''Hulk in Hell, part 2. It whispers through many mouths. It destroys with many hands. Its only weapon is hate. The One Below All is in control, and Bruce Banner belongs to him. Hell is ascendant. But there are two people Hell is not strong enough to hold (''The Immortal Hulk #13). Betty Ross is going through a lot, in The Immortal Hulk #14. She's having a family crisis. Her employers won't pick up the phone. And at her door is the husband she thought was dead. Dr. Leonard Samson is a gamma mutate and a part-time superhero who recently came back from the dead. Take a seat on the couch, The Immortal Hulk #15. Once upon a time, Rick Jones was the Hulk's best friend. Now Rick Jones is dead and gone. To learn why, Banner will have to face roaming gamma experiments, an assassin out for his blood, and the one thing that can cage The Immortal Hulk #16. Banner is trapped inside Shadow Base Site A, powerless and hunted by their top assassin. He can't run forever. He can't survive – without The Immortal Hulk #17. (Jackie McGee a sks how long ago Walter was possessed. Walter reassures Jackie that Tanaraq is dead, and that he's now fully in control of his Sasquatch form. The two arrive at the scene of the Hulk's most recent sighting but find nothing but police and smashed cars). Image from Immortal Hulk #4 ------------> Jackie McGee One character that is featured in the series (first appearing in issue #1) is a reporter named Jacqueline McGee (Earth-616). The character is an homage to Jack McGee. Immortal Hulk #18 Shadow Base has declared total war on Bruce Banner, and one by one, death is touching everyone he ever knew – except for one. The one monster who never dies, who returns, again and again, to hate and destroy. But it is not the Immortal Hulk. The gamma radiation that transformed Bruce Banner into the Hulk all those years ago did not just create one monstrous superhero, it was also a catalyst for dozens more gamma-powered characters, from villains like the Abomination to heroes like She-Hulk. The Abomination is back, and Banner is in deep trouble, in The Immortal Hulk #19. Previously, Banner was being hunted by a shadow organization in the U.S. government, while manifesting a new, darker, and more cunning Hulk persona than he had ever shown before. Now, a confused Hulk squares off with his old friend, and Jones is far more dangerous than any Abomination Banner has confronted before. Banner and Betty are reunited in the most disturbing way possible in The Immortal Hulk #20. It is a trip down memory lane with Banner’s current number one enemy, General Reginald Fortean, in The Immortal Hulk #21. The horrific, critically acclaimed saga of the Immortal Hulk continues... Louis Lembert alias Hotshot (Earth-616) When his girlfriend, Jailbait, died, he started losing his mind. He went to a church during Sunday services and held the congregation hostage in order to force the priest to perform last rites on Jailbait all while ranting that Jailbait was possessed by t he devil and that he saw a green door, when she had been taken over by the spirit of Brian Banner. He was eventually confronted by the Hulk who broke both of his hands and knocked him out. The police then arrested Lembert. Still grieving over the loss of Jailbait, Lambert committed suicide while in prison by hanging himself. Demonstrating the ability to possess gamma mutates, Brian Banner took possession of Jailbait, causing her powers to go out of control and making her boyfriend Hotshot believe she was possessed by the Devil. Immortal Hulk #22 Team Green finally gets a little downtime in The Immortal Hulk #22. Shadow Base has one goal: to stop the monsters, the forces of chaos. And give their power to men of order. But the monsters have goals of their own. And now they’re working together. Rick Jones remembers everything, and you wouldn’t like him when he’s angry. Eventually the base was requisitioned by the U.S. Hulk Operations and christened Shadow Base Site B. The war has come home, and Shadow Base is the battleground. The stage is set for the final confrontation between the new Abomination. ''It's Hulk and his Incredible Friends versus General Fortean and the Hulkbusters for all the money in this week's ''The Immortal Hulk #23. Banner and General Fortean's fight comes to a disturbing conclusion in The Immortal Hulk ''#24. Nothing can save you, nothing is left to hear you scream, and there is no escape from the Breaker of Worlds in ''The Immortal Hulk ''#25. ''The Immortal Hulk ''#26 pushes the narrative forward a great deal as we finally get to see the outcome of Banner and Hulk taking over Shadow Base. In his war on the human world, ''The Immortal Hulk #27 is taking the fight to its lords and masters; the Roxxon Corporation. Some monsters are born from gamma, and the other monsters worship a different kind of green. In his war on the human world, the Immortal Hulk is taking the fight to its lords and masters; the Roxxon Corporation. But when you mess with The Minotaur, you get the horns. Breaker of Worlds Hulk has always been a being of destruction, unleashed by the devastating power of a gamma bomb. But in the pages of The Immortal Hulk, he’s become the being of destruction, a cosmic entity that drifts through the universe joyfully punching through planets.The Immortal Hulk ''smashes the Universe. I betrayed the Earth to elves, and I am still here. Roxxon West is why. I placed four B.E.S.E.R.K.E.R. units on guard. Elite Hulk-level troops. Trained to attack and destroy without hesitation. If they aren't enough... then Bruce Banner will have achieved something previously thought impossible. He will have hurt the Roxxon Corporation. (Minotaur) The Green Door The Green Door was partially opened by Bruce Banner during the Gamma Bomb test at the Los Diablos Missile Base, which infused him with the One Below All's power and turned him into the Hulk. When Brian Banner was killed by his son in the form of the Devil Hulk, he was sent to the One Below All's realm. Using Brian Banner's soul as its vessel, the One Below All was able to exit the Green Door and possess Jailbait, causing her powers to go out of control. Her boyfriend, Hotshot, then was forced to tie her to a chair, due to her power growing out of control. He went to a church during Sunday services and held the congregation hostage in order to force the priest to perform last rites on Jailbait all. He was ranting that Jailbait was possessed by the devil and that he saw a green door. (With the backing of the Canadian government's Department H, Walter Langkowski conducted an experiment in the Arctic Circle where he bombarded himself with Gamma Rays. Because the walls of reality are thin up in the Arctic, the rays burst opened a door, a green door, to a world of monsters, allowing the Great Beast Tanaraq (alias Sasquatch) to possess his body, giving Walter the power to assume Tanaraq's form). Immortal Hulk vs Sasquatch Bruce Banner tells Jackie McGee to evacuate the hospital while he goes and deals with Sasquatch, or whatever it's become. Jackie tells Bruce he owes her answers, but Bruce tells her he owes a lot of people and that she will have to wait. Bruce enters the operating room and finds Sasquatch standing over the corpses of three doctors, licking their blood off its claws. Almost instantly, Bruce turns into the Hulk and attacks Sasquatch. (''The Immortal Hulk #5) ''After Sasquatch was killed by Snowbird, Shaman used the Great Key to transport the team to the Realm of Great Beasts. There they found Walter's spirit. With Boch's permission, Shaman placed it into the Box robot. Bruce Banner It’s no secret that Bruce Banner has long had a troublesome history with his father, who abused him as a child. We’re shown Bruce’s childhood, with scenes of the abusive father and the abused son framed in the context of the dichotomy between God and The Devil. The Hulk is a monster, a creature of the night and shadow. But the night and shadow cannot exist without the day and light, much like the Devil may not be without God or a Hell without a Heaven. It’s not that simple The Immortal Hulk is like a chaotic neut ral. Unlike most versions of Hulk he doesn’t just tolerate Banner he loves Banner like he was his son and doesn’t like it when people hurt Bruce Banner. This version completely hates humans and is more willing to have them wiped out if it means having some peace, but given that this version is more caring towards Banner and what he wants he probably won’t ever try to go through with it. Just like any version of Hulk he’s doing just as much good as he is bad. By this time, Bruce Banner's persona, that had been overwhelmed by the Hulk's psyche, came to the realization that this succession of resurrections was not a coincidence, but simply a manifestation of the Hulk's innate immortality. The history of Bruce Banner of Earth-TRN781 is believed to mirror that of Bruce Banner of Earth-616 until the One Below All managed to destroy his soul and take possession of his body. Venom When Dark Carnage attacked, the symbiote angrily abandoned Eddie when he tried to retreat to protect Dylan; bonding to Bruce Banner, who transformed into the Devil Hulk after being killed by Dark Carnage. The Venomized Hulk put up an even fight against Dark Carnage, who sensed the power of the One Below All and wanted to merge it s power with Knull's. When the Venomized Hulk refused to join him, Dark Carnage stabbed tendrils into his brain to force him to revert into Bruce Banner, then ripped the Venom symbiote off of him and assimilated it - transforming into an even more powerful form sporting draconic wings and horns, and pauldrons and arm wraps resembling those of Knull. That is to say: The Hulk is Venom now. But what happens when the symbiote, used to existing as a dual entity, comes into contact with the fractured mind of Bruce Banner, who shares his body with three or more different Hulks? Bruce Banner is no stranger to sharing his body with a powerful, malevolent entity. But it’s not just Bruce who shows up at the bargaining table. There are three Hulks in his mind: Grey Hulk, Savage Hulk, and Immortal Hulk, and they get a say in whether to let the symbiote into their system. Of the four personalities in Banner’s body, only the Immortal Hulk, arguably the best combination of strength and intelligence, but who can only come out at night, is opposed to it. Immortal Hulk #28 Bruce Banner is just getting started. He has an underground fortress. He has powerful allies. He even has henchmen. He has everything he needs to declare total war on human society. Bruce Banner is the most dange rous man in the world! But while the big green Bernie Sanders’ actions might seem the only reasonable option in the face of capitalism run rampant, for others, the Hulk is drastically changing the American way of life. It’s certainly doing that for Dario Agger, if nothing else. But it also ties into the generational divide affecting regular, working class families. Thankfully, there’s always the thinly-veiled analogue, Roxx News, to provide comfort for worried Boomers… and to whip them into a counter-frenzy. Matías Bergara and Tom Reilly have stepped in as guest artists of Immortal Hulk #28. The duo are replacing series artist Joe Bennett on this issue. Series writer Al Ewing's story will be a single story told from two different perspectives, with each artist drawing one of side of the tale. Bennett is slated to return for ''The Immortal Hulk ''#29. ''The Immortal Hulk #26 sees Bruce Banner announcing his intention to attack the main entities exacerbating major societal problems, and often profiting off of the very issues they create. His goal is to provide real consequences for the injustices of corporations and other organizations. In his monologue, Banner mentions climate change, and the way the actions of particular entities creates a loop that trades results in destruction for short-term gain. There's no ambiguity here: Bruce's world is dying because of the actions of predatory members of the economic elite, and so is ours, with 100 companies responsible for the majority of the emissions that place Earth at risk. Hulk's first target is, and this isn't a coincidence, Roxxon Energy Corporation. The company is led by Dario Agger, who in The Immortal Hulk #27 explicitly explains that he actively moved Roxxon away from renewable energy when he became CEO. However, this isn't due to the villain thinking climate change isn't real. Instead, Agger believes the science about climate change, but he plans to profit off of the resulting "resource war." There's an advantage in destroying the world. Agger is certainly an exaggeration of a CEO who prioritizes profit over the greater good (although when the science is as irrefutable as it is in regard to climate change, the choice to ignore reality in favor of profits is certainly not much different). However, he's an expression of present anxieties and frustrations about the ultra rich and the CEOs of massive companies and whether they're doing enough to save our world. In The Immortal Hulk #27, Agger explains he won't be hiding his true form anymore, remarking nobody will care that he's literally a monster. People also seem to have forgotten Agger sided against humanity in the War of the Realms. For Agger, there are no consequences for publicly being a monster. Roxxon's stock price is actually rising when the story begins, meaning Agger is making more money than he was before. Even though the CEO behind the company is a literal monster, people continue consuming Roxxon's products and services, which include Roxx News, YouRoxx and RoxxFace. Like in Hulk's explanation, there are no consequences for Agger's actions to enrich himself at the expense of others. Most importantly, The Immortal Hulk #26 features a conversation between Amadeus Cho and Banner examining whether the latter's destructive plans are correct, and if he'd transformed from hero to villain. Cho serves as the voice of hope, believing that there are other potential ways to make the world better. The intersection of Banner's race and rage also play a role in the conversation, as it has in previous entries in the run. Although Banner's rage is a powerful tool, the aforementioned security guard is also angry. That doesn't mean he's right or that his attempts to make a better world mean one will come about. Amadeus subtly warns Bruce to check his privilege in how he's approaching his next endeavor, as he's "an angry middle-class white guy talking about revolution. That doesn't always end so well." However, Amadeus never says Bruce is wrong in his evaluation of how corporations are destroying the world. This conversation doesn't change the fact that what Roxxon is doing is wrong or that destructive, self-perpetuating systems are risking everyone on Earth for profit. This then leaves the question of how best to fix the problem which, if left unchecked, will lead to catastrophe. Bruce's experience reflects the frustration so many feel about watching the world around them collapse and feeling powerless to act, which is why Hulk's actions inspire a new Teen Brigade: The young and disaffected finally have someone who can do somethingabout the problem. Immortal Hulk wants readers to question the title character and his methods while making the problem he's addressing clear and unambiguous. Immortal Hulk #29 Giant monsters have been unleashed in Phoenix, Arizona. The Roxxon Corporation is unavailable for com '' ment. The people need help. They need the crusading outlaw with a heart of gold they read about in the Herald. They need their sec ret hero. Instead, they’re getting ''The Immortal Hulk #29. The first Gamma Bomb unleashed a terrifying creature with impossible strength who waged war on all human authority. The authorities gave the beast a name, a name the whole world knows. But it was someone else’s name first, and now the Hulk that was has returned to take it back. There’s a new monster in town. He’s cuddly. He’s lovable. He’s down with the kids. And he’s available for your corporate retreat. Yes, there was another Hulk, once, the one who made all those nasty threats to end the world. But who needs him? The living Hulk is here. And he’s going to save us all, or your money back. (The Immortal Hulk #30 #31) The Teen Brigade Al Ewing and Joe Bennett's Immortal Hulk has seen the titular hero declaring war on various organizations he sees as a threat to the world, starting with Roxxon. Hulk stuck a major blow against the corporation by attacking its servers, which sees reports of a new organization called the "Teen Brigade" donning masks with the gamma-irradiated hero's face on them. The Teen Brigade has its roots in some classic, first appearing in 1963's Incredible Hulk #6. The group was originally led by Rick Jones, Hulk's sidekick. This version of the group seems more dedicated to protest and will likely take a much different form, though exactly what that will be isn't revealed. The Immortal Hulk ''#28 reinvents a classic team of young heroes. ''The Immortal Hulk #28 also explores the idea of dissent getting repackaged and undermined for the sake of profit. Before heading off to get his own Hulk, one of Dario Agger's lackeys reveals that Roxxon is actually using a shell company to sell Hulk masks with the intent of eventually leaking the company's involvement and the environmentally unstable nature of the masks so as to "dampen enthusiasm with the 12-18s." Here, Roxxon is actually planning to make money off attempts to protest while simultaneously undermining those working against them and for a better world. The Immortal Hulk Destroys the One Below All So far, the One Below All is considered an all-powerful demonic entity of unparalleled might. It is also revealed that despite the entity's immense power, it can only manifest via the Green Door or gamma-mutated beings such as the Hulk. So far, the One Below All has no set "true form", but has very brief appearances where it can take seemingly any form it desires, though it favors the use of extremely abstract and terrifying visages. Despite its Satanic nature, the One Below All's apparent "true form" is actually a gigantic mass of green smoke and resembles a living gamma-bomb explosion in many ways. Alpha Flight Space Program Eugene Judd (alias Puck) later became a member of the Alpha Flight space program. When the Hulk battling Absorbing Man, who had been possesed by the One Below All, in Los Diablos Missile Base, Puck along with Langkowski and reporter, Jackie McGee arrived. As the Hulk realised that the One Below All had been opening the Gre en Door left from the Gamma Bomb, that turned Bruce Banner into the Hulk, it was too late and everyone were sucked at the Below-Place. Puck found Absorbing Man sobbing and encourged him to try and close the interdimensional door. They aproach the One Below All in the form of Brian Benner, beside Bruce, whom the One Below All had planed to use him to get to Earth. Absorbing Man managed to repower the Hulk and stop the One Below All. After managing to escape, Puck offered Absorbing Man a place at Gamma Flight, which he accepted. Following the Shadow Base's latest attack on the Hulk, Gamma Flight retrieved Rick Jones' Abomination shell. However, General Fortean in the Redeemer Armor attacked the Gamma Flight and incapacitated them. After recovering themselves, they found out that their teammate Langkowski had been killed by Fortean. They decide to attack the Shadow Base and during their attack, they are joined by Hulk, Betsy Ross, Rick Jones and Jackie McGee. However, they are eventually overwhelmed by Fortean as the new Abomination and his soldiers. THE HULK VS. THE HULKS Covers cov5.jpg| Vol. #1 (variant) cov6.jpg| Vol. #1 (variant) cov4.jpg| Vol. #20 (variant) cov2.jpg| Vol. #25 HULK2018025 Lim-variant cov.jpg| Vol. #25 (variant) cov1.jpg| Vs. Cosmic Ghost Rider (#6) cov7.jpg| One Below All (#9) cov8.jpg| Absolute Carnage: Immortal Hulk (#1) hulk2018016_mckone_asgardian-var.jpg| War of the Realms (#16) marvel-to-carnage-ize-heroes-on-25-absolute-carnage-variants-for-july-6.jpeg| Vol. #20 Carnage-ized Variant open-uri20191016-4-14cns1v.jpg| Hidden Gem (#25 variant) 3dd0d570509978a99caba8abb05731a0.jpg| Vol. 15 Third Printing Variant immortalhulk07deodato.jpg| Vol. 7 MK20 Variant (Mike Deodato) stl1411.png|Immortal Hulk Great Power #1 (Fiumara Variant) a2a2bfd6b83425bfaa05258adb56824e7a17.jpg|Immortal Hulk #9 (3rd Printing Bennett Variant) STL106040.jpg|Immortal Hulk #6 (2nd Printing Garbett Variant) Immortal-Hulk-25-Marvel-Comics-Kris-Anka-Mary-Jane-Variant-Cover.jpg|Immortal Hulk #25 Kris Anka Mary Jane Variant Cover d65a8d603e930e42d2062941885049d3f35e.jpg|Immortal Hulk #23 (Keown Immortal Wraparound Variant) Notes *The United States Hulk Operations, also known as Shadow Base, was a clandestine U.S. Military organization tasked with hunting down the Hulk and his allies. *Reginald Fortean later became in charge of U.S. Hulk Operations, a program apparently created to monitor and study Hulk. General Fortean (alias, Abomination), was determined to study gamma mutation and weaponize it. *Jeffrey Clive was one of the scientists of U.S. Hulk Operations, serving under Reginal Fortean and working with them to monitor Hulk and those close to him. He was forced to join the Hulk Operations after engaging in a large-scale investment fraud in order to avoid going to prison.